In the last month, TCU players have been charged with DUI, theft and assault. A couple of local high school players have attacked game officials.

And because of all of that, it’s refreshing to find a sport that works on an honor system and is untainted by greed.

Ultimate isn’t the sport we want, but it might be the sport we need.

If you’ve never heard of it, join the crowd.

Ultimate should not be confused with disc golf, where you see folks hurling discs at stationary targets in city parks.

The elevator pitch for Ultimate goes like this: “It’s like soccer and football, played with a disc, without refs and with men and women playing together.”

Ultimate began as a club sport in Maplewood, N.J. in 1968.

It’s played on a football field, by seven-player teams, with a disc that can only be advanced by throwing. There is a lot of running between throws. When a player catches the disc in the end zone, one point is scored.

There are men’s and women’s teams, but in its original form, Ultimate is a mixed sport.

It’s also self-officiated. Players call violations. Ultimate has a tenet called “The Spirit of the Game,” which preaches fair play and serves as a framework to solve any in-game issues.

That mix of inclusion and self-policing played a major part in the International Olympic Committee recognizing Ultimate for possible inclusion in the Games, said Andy Lee of USA Ultimate, the sport’s officially-recognized governing body.

Five million Americans play the game regularly, Lee said, making it the third-fastest growing sport in the country, behind lacrosse and rugby.

There are a few semi-pro leagues, but the vast majority of players are club members or pickup players.

He would be referring to a player such as Carol “Doc” Redfield, director of St. Mary’s Graduate Program of Computer Science and Computer Information Systems. She plays six days a week, on fields all over the city; USAA, Southwest Research, college campuses, city parks and sports fields.

“I like the strategy and precision of the game,” Redfield said. “I like the speed, the flow of action and the teamwork.”

She sometimes plays in pickup games organized by Mike Koch at various North side parks and school playgrounds on Wednesdays and Sundays.

“This might be the longest running pickup game in the city,” Koch said. “We’ve been playing it since 1985.”

That’s where Hansen made her big play on a recent Sunday.

It looks hard, but when you see someone like Hansen diving for a disc because she wants to, it looks fun.